“Th1rteen R3asons Why” by Jay Asher

This could be another depressing book about the painful topic of teen suicide if not for a fairly brilliant literary device. Hannah Baker is dead, and one of her classmates, Clay Jensen, arrives home one day to find a box of audiotapes at his doorstep. When he plays the tapes, he is shocked to hear Hannah’s voice. She says the tapes will explain her suicide, placing blame on the thirteen people who caused her life to spiral out of control. Each “chapter” of the book then covers one side of each tape, the story of a person who did something to hurt her or did something they shouldn’t have which ended up causing pain to others. Despite an overabundance of bad luck for Hannah, it does ring true as far as the teen experience goes. It is not an easy book to read, but the structure makes you want to turn the page. Much like Clay, you want to know “the answer”. And this is key – while many events are spelled out, many injuries (big and small) are detailed, at the end this is a suicide. Clay’s questions, and those of the reader, will remain unanswered. It is not the most brilliantly written book. There are no great literary turns of phrase, and Clay’s memories, intertwined sentence-by-sentence with Hannah’s reflections, can sometimes make for a dizzying read. But it is compelling. Asher doesn’t shy from the realities of teen world – the distance many feel from their parents, the isolation that makes every kid have a monologue of sorts in their own head. He also doesn’t absolve Hannah. Like any suicide, this one prompts sadness, guilt, confusion and anger. Mr. Asher allows his main character to feel all of these emotions, and more, never cleaning up or even resolving the churning feelings that are brought up by this tale. I read the book over two days, but felt tense the entire time … in many ways I was over-identifying with Clay, who experiences this entire event in a single night and is stressed and sickened by what he hears. The book was, however, a favorite in TAB last year. (I **really** need to read these TAB books before the students do!!) It is not a middle school book (due primarily to the story of #12), but hey, if it spoke to those who read it, who am I to say no? A worthwhile book to read, perhaps a more important book to discuss. As Hannah would say – it’s your turn.